Don't Let Go
by AngelEyes213
Summary: Tobias Eaton and Beatrice Prior are detectives who work together at the Special Victims Unit in Chicago. As partners, they spend their days and nights chasing different types of criminals and bringing them to justice. This is a story about police, so there may be a few topics throughout this story that may be triggering for some people, so be aware of that while reading.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

 **Tris**

* * *

"Suspect is heading down East Madison Street, north towards Millennium Park. Suspect is a white male, blonde hair, white t-shirt, and blue jeans." A voice crackles over the scanner as I'm following closely behind the suspect. "Be advised, Detective Prior is in pursuit, backup is needed." I huff once, swerving between people, and trying to avoid running into anybody.

The man's pace starts to slow as he runs through more people and then somebody is tackling him to the ground. A crowd starts to gather around us, but thankfully there are a few police arriving and pushing the crowd back while my partner, Detective Tobias Eaton, cuffs the suspect.

"I didn't do anything! I didn't do anything, I swear!" The man is exclaiming as Tobias yanks him up to his feet.

He rolls his eyes and just gives me a look. "Yeah, right. You can tell that to the judge. We caught you red-handed." He looks back at me, eyeing me up and down quickly. "You good?" He asks, and I nod.

"I'm fine." I'm just annoyed that he took the guy down – I had him.

Tobias shoves the guy forward, one hand on his shoulder to direct him towards one of the waiting police cars that had finally arrived. "Watch your head." He says as he pushes the guy into the back of the car and then shuts the door, ignoring the man's protests about being innocent.

"Is the girl okay?" Tobias asks, turning back to face me.

I nod. "Yeah, she's fine. He barely had time to do much besides ripping her t-shirt before I busted him." I cross my arms over my chest and glare at him. "I had him."

He looks at me, confused. "I'm sorry?"

"I had him! I was less than a second away from taking him down, but then you stepped in."

Tobias just looks at me. "Are you serious right now? Who cares how close you were? I had the chance to tackle him so I took it! This isn't training or the academy – this isn't a competition. If you have the chance, you take it. If you don't, you don't. It's that simple."

He's right, but that doesn't mean I'm still not annoyed. I've been working as hard as I can to try and prove myself, prove that I'm an important part of this team and that I can be an asset. I'm young and most of the officers in our department were skeptical about me being hired – especially as a detective. So far, I've managed to do a good job of putting them to shame for doubting me and having Tobias as a partner has helped.

People respect him, respect his authority, and automatically trust him. He's been a big part in making sure that people don't doubt me, but he still has his moments of cockiness that make me think he wants to be the "star student".

We head back to the station and Tobias escorts the suspect into an interrogation room, shoving him down onto the metal chair. I stand behind the one-way mirror, flicking the intercom button on so I can hear what they're discussing.

Nothing exciting happens – the guy just complains about the handcuffs being too tight, being innocent and that he's being set up. And then he demands a lawyer.

Shaking my head, I flick the switch off and head back to my desk.

"Prior, my office. Now." I look up to see my sergeant leaning out from her office. I quickly try to gauge her facial expression, trying to see if she was angry or not. It was so easy to piss Jeanine Matthews off.

I make my way into her office and Tobias steps in a few seconds after me, looking just as confused as I feel.

Jeanine takes a seat at her desk and folds her arms in front of her on top of the desk, looking up at the two of us. "How many times do I have to tell you two – stop arguing in public!" She sighs, exasperated. "It looks bad on both of you and it looks bad on the department. There's already enough problems with the public's opinion of the police, the last thing that we need is to have two officers publicly arguing." We both murmur and apology. "You guys are partners – start acting like it."

After a few moments, she rubs her hands down her face and then looks at Tobias. "Did you get anything out of Anderson?"

He shakes his head. "He didn't say anything except that he's innocent and then he lawyered up." Tobias scoffs. "Tris caught him before he was able to assault the girl, who made an eyewitness identification – and so did four other girls. He's not getting away with it."

"Alright, I'll take it from here. I have another assignment for you two." She stands up and hands us each a manila folder. "There's talk of a sex-trafficking ring downtown. I need you two to stake it out and see what's going on."

We take our leave and sit down at our desks that are opposite of each other. "Head out around six?" He suggests, looking at me over his laptop.

Later that night, the two of us are sitting in an unmarked car across the street from the house with the possible sex-traffic ring. It's cold, the heater is on and Tobias just recently stopped to get us coffee, my hands clutched around the cup trying to keep them warm. The car's lights are off and our windows are tinted, nobody able to see us in it.

Tobias and I spent less than five minutes discussing tactics – there's an ESU van parked a block over, ready and waiting for us to give any sign to go in.

"So…you don't think that the Blackhawks are going to make the playoffs this year?" Tobias asks, his voice laced with disbelief.

I shake my head. "Absolutely not. They're not constant enough – they win two, lose five, win five lose three. Kane and Crawford are constantly out with injuries this season and the team's looking a little worn down." I shrug, sipping my coffee.

He shakes his head. "I don't believe you. How can you be so pessimistic about your own city's team?"

"I'm just thinking logically. Regardless of whether I'm a fan, which I am, I can see that they need to step up their game and improve their play if they want to make it to the finals again."

Tobias laughs without humor and keeps smiling at me. Something in my stomach twists and I feel my cheeks warm up o I turn to look out the windshield.

Suddenly, a high-pitched scream pierces the quiet of the night and Tobias and I are both out of the car in seconds, heading towards the house. "ESU, now." Tobias orders into the walkie talkie. We both take our guns from our hip-holsters and head up the steps, knocking once and announcing our presence. Ten seconds later, footsteps are heard behind us as ESU approaches and then Tobias is kicking open the door.

"Chicago PD, hands up now!" Tobias barks. There's a good fifteen people in the small living room – eight of them girls in booty shorts and tank tops. "Don't move!" Tobias threatens, pointing his gun at one of the older men in the corner.

ESU makes their way into the house, handcuffing the men and women in the room. I make my way over to a girl, curled into herself in the corner of the room wearing booty shorts and a tight tank top, her brown eyes wide and scared. "Hi, sweetie." I holster my gun to avoid scaring her more, and crouch down in front of her – she doesn't look more than fourteen years old. My throat tightens. "What's your name?"

She looks at me, tears pooling in her eyes. "She doesn't speak English." A voice speaks up behind me. I glance over my shoulder and one of the women in handcuffs is looking at the girl, worry clear on her face. There was an almost…maternal look to how she was staring at the girl. "Her name's Josephine – she speaks Spanish."

A suspect cooperating without being forced? Strange.

I can't speak Spanish besides 'hello' and 'goodbye'. Holding my hand out to the girl, I help her to her feet and give her my CPD jacket and steering her out of the room full over overgrown men, staring at her, at her legs and body.

"You got this under control?" I ask Tobias, passing by him. He nods, face serious. "I'll meet you back at the station."

More officers were showing up so he could get a ride back with one of them. I help Josephine into the back of the car and then head to the station.

I walk her into one of the…nicer interrogation rooms and place a bottle of water and a granola bar in front of her. "You're okay, sweetie. You're safe here." I reassure her, not knowing how much English she can understand. Wracking my brain, I try to conjure up my high school Spanish education – "Estás seguro…"

Her body visibly relaxes and she wipes her tears away with the back of her hand. The door behind me opens and Christina walks in – she's one of the tech geniuses and, thankfully, speaks Spanish.

Christina gives me a friendly smile and I make my way over to her. "What do you need to know?" She asks, eyes glancing over to the girl quickly and then back to me.

"Just…find out how she got here, who brought her and if she knows where she may have been going. And if you can, find out how old she is and if…if she was raped. If she was, you're going to have to come with us to the hospital so that we have a translator." Christina nods, all business now.

I leave the room and when I'm back in the office, Tobias is walking somebody into the other interrogation room – an older woman, the one who told me Josephine's name. I follow them.

Standing in front of the glass, I watch as he points to the metal chair and she sits, looking rather smug. I press the button on the wall and the speaks crackle to life. "…What were you doing in that house?" Tobias asks, his voice threatening but low. He's leaning on his arms, the palms of his hands pressed to the table.

"I was delivering food." She says nonchalantly, fluttering her eyelashes.

I bite the insides of my cheeks.

Tobias shakes his head, shifting from one foot to the other – he' irritated. "Sure you were. I'm only giving you one more chance – if you cooperate with us, I'll make sure that the DA gives you a good deal. Tell us who is the behind this and where you're sending the girls."

She shrugs again. "I don't know. I don't deal with any of that."

Jeanine appears at my side just as Tobias slams his hands against the table top. "Stop lying! There were fourteen-year-old girls in that house. You knew their names, their backgrounds. You had a part in this – in a part of those men, and who knows how many others, assaulting those girls. Do you know what that means?" She shifts in her chair. "It means that you're an accomplish to, so far, twelve counts of statutory rape. And I'm sure the DA would love to add in a few more charges that will put you away for the rest of your life."

"The other men are giving up information left and right – they're all illegal immigrants, the Johns…" Jeanine says, glancing at me. "The other men there, some of them hold government positions." I stiffen and she notices, cracking a smirk. "I'm sure your father is going to love to hear about this."

He'll keep it out of the news. He'll find a way.

Christina is at my other side, arms crossed tightly across her chest. "Josephine is fifteen, she came here from a small town in Mexico and she was supposed to be going to New York City."

"Who brought her here?" I ask.

Christina laughs, no humor in the laugh. "Her parents, unbelievably."

Both Jeanine and I look at her, surprise etched on our faces. "What?!" We both say together.

"Her parents pulled her from her bed in the middle of the night, handed her off to some men where she was placed in the back of a van and they were brought up here." She sounds disgusted and I can't blame her.

"How did they get past border patrol?" I ask, incredulous.

Jeanine scoffs, looking back into the interrogation room. "You'd be surprised how easily some people can be bribed."

The woman in the room with Tobias is still trying to be cute and flirty with him, except he's not having it and it's starting to frustrate her.

But it still makes me want to slap her.

I turn away from the scene in front of me and pull Christina with me. "Did you find out if Josephine was assaulted?" I ask and I know the answer from the look on her face. Sighing, I glance over to where she's still seated in the room, nibbling on the granola bar. "We're going to have to take her to go get a rape kit done and I need you to explain it to her."

Christina nods and follows me into the room. We both take a seat in front of the girl and her brown eyes are ringed in red from crying. I glance at Christina and nod, and she starts to explain to the girl what is going to happen.

Josephine isn't too happy about going to the hospital, but she still agrees as long as Christina and I stay with her. We both give her reassuring smiles and head out.

As we're leaving, Tobias is walking out of the interrogation room with the woman in front of him, her hands handcuffed behind her and looking rather ticked off. I can't help my smirk.

* * *

 _Author's Note: This is another head's up, but there are going to be topics discussed and brought up throughout this story that might be upsetting for some people. If the mention of rape or anything along those lines makes you uncomfortable, I would suggest staying away from this story. Basically, if you can't watch Law & Order: SVU or similar shows, don't read this. I'm not going to avoid talking about the topics because they do play a major part in the storyline._


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

 **Tobias**

* * *

It was raining and miserably cold for a Friday in the middle of September. Living in Chicago was great, until the bipolar weather started to hit. Today the high won't reach the mid-fifties, but tomorrow? Tomorrow it's supposed to be in the high seventies.

The rain tapped against the window next to my desk and it was like an obnoxious reminder of how slow the day was going by. We hadn't gotten any calls and Jeanine hadn't sent anybody out to check on anything. It was a day to sit around the office and do nothing but file paperwork and stare at the computer screens.

Tris Prior was sitting across from me, concentrating on whatever was on her computer screen. Whatever it was, it was frustrating her – there was a crinkle between her eyebrows that she only got when she was frustrated.

There was suddenly a flurry of commotion at the main door and then some shouting. Two guys – probably in their early twenties and still in college, from the University of Chicago sweatshirts – were being walked in, their hands behind their backs, by two officers. Both guys were yapping about their fathers suing the police over being manhandled.

Another officer walks in, her arm wrapped around the shoulders of a girl. She didn't look much older than eighteen.

Tris is out of her seat and heading towards the room where the officer is leading the girl. I go towards one of the interrogation rooms where the guys are. The officer comes out of the room after shoving the bigger guy onto the chair in the room and shakes his head at me. "His name's Greg. He's a junior at the University of Chicago and him and his friend were found in a room with the girl after someone ran in after hearing screams. Two football players ripped them off her and then the girl who found them called the police."

"So…two guys, two football players, had to rip them off her and they're both still claiming that they're innocent?" I was more surprised by the fact that people had helped the girl. Back when I was in college, people just turned their backs – didn't want to get friends in trouble.

The officer shakes his head. "They're not saying that they're innocent. Something tells me that their parents are rich and know that they'll probably get off without a conviction or being put on the registry."

I thanked the officer and then headed into the room. "So…Greg." I take a seat across from him, leaning back in the chair and crossing my arms over my chest. "Let's just get this over with." I lean forward, placing my arms on the metal table. "Did you or did you not rape that girl?"

He shrugs, feigning innocence. "I didn't do anything that she didn't want." He raises his blonde eyebrows. "Is she really claiming that we raped her?"

"Not her. But the three witnesses – you know, the two football players who ripped you off her and the girl who walked in after she heard her screaming." I glare at him. "If you really think that mommy and daddy are going to be able to get you out of trouble, especially with three eye witnesses and DNA, then you're in for a world of hurt."

The mischievous spark in his eyes disappear and his body sags. "I didn't do anything."

"You keep saying that, maybe you'll come up with a good story for your attorney and the jury."

I stand up from the table and slam the door behind me when I leave the room. Zeke, who is the same age as me and helped me get this job, walks out of the other interrogation room, shaking his head. "Entitled frat boys."

"Think they're going to take a plea?" I ask and Zeke shakes his head. "Didn't think so." I shake my head and then walk to the other one-way mirror where Tris is still talking to the girl.

She's sitting on the couch next to her, rubbing the girl's back reassuringly as the girl continues to talk and cry. Tris doesn't look that much older from the girl, which is a good thing for these kinds of problems – people are more willing to talk to her. And it helps that she doesn't look like she could hurt a fly, although I know that's far from true.

Tris stands up from the couch and then makes her way out of the room and I turn to face her. "She said she wants to testify." Tris runs a hand through her hair, irritated, and then looks at me. "What?" She snaps.

I shake my head. "Nothing. Did you get anything from her?"

"Yeah, her name is Olivia, she said that she went to the party with her friends, she didn't drink or take anything, and she went upstairs to go to the bathroom. Assholes One and Two followed her and dragged her into a bedroom. She kept asking them to get off her and she said no multiple times, and then she started to scream."

"Did she get a rape kit done?" I ask.

She nods. "Her friends took her to the hospital where the police met her and then brought her here."

There wasn't anything else left for us to do, Jeanine was taking it over as soon as the lawyers showed up. Olivia's parents showed up and we showed them to where she was waiting and I saw the anger in her father's eyes and I really hoped he didn't get anywhere near either of the guys because then we'd have an even bigger problem on our hands.

The office starts to clear out around seven, but I stay behind to catch up on some paperwork. Zeke gives me a friendly salute as he's heading out, Tris and Christina following behind him.

Jeanine leaves around eight-thirty and I promise her I'll shut down after I'm done.

Around nine-thirty, I hear heels clacking on the marble in the hall and then Tris walks into the office and I do a double take.

She's wearing a black blouse, red skirt that stops just above her knees and black tights. And heels – she's wearing heels. I've only ever seen her wear anything remotely girly at a holiday party awhile back.

"What?" She asks, giving me an annoyed look as she sits down across from me at her desk.

I shake my head. "Nothing, just…you look nice." She shrugs and drops her wallet on top of the desk, shrugging out of her leather jacket.

"I had a date and I thought if I dressed nice, the date would go well." She runs her fingers through her hair, frustrated.

"I take it went badly?" I press.

She rests her elbows on the top of her desk. "We didn't even make it to dinner before I lied to him and told him that I had gotten a call from Jeanine and had to come in. He drove me so I had to make it look like I wasn't lying."

I can't help but laugh and drop my attention back to my paperwork. "I was just about to order some food, do you want anything?"

Tris slumps in her seat, almost in relief. "God, yes. I'm starving."

We order some Chinese food and I finish the last of my paperwork while we wait for it to arrive. Once it does, we chat while eating. She goes on about how the guy did nothing but talk about himself – how well traveled he was, how much money he had, how often he had dated women who wanted nothing but his money. "He was so full of himself it took all of my energy not to punch him." She sighs, angrily poking her lo mein with her chopsticks. "I mean…no shit women are going to want money from you when all you do for twenty minutes is talk about how much money you make every day. I'm going to kill Christina."

"Why Christina?" I ask.

She glowers at her food. "She was the one who set me up on the date – blind date, I should say. She thought that I needed to get out more so I said yes, like an idiot." She places the container of food on her desk, reaching for her beer.

I had to admit, hearing her talk about how badly her date went made me feel a little happy. I didn't completely understand why, but I was just…happy.

Eventually we should head out, both of us having early shifts and its already past midnight. I didn't even realize it until I glanced at my computer. We toss the empty containers and I shut the lights off, both us walking down and out of the building together. "I'm glad I lied to that guy." Tris says, turning to face me. "This was nice."

She grins at me and then turns and heads to the waiting cab. I watch as the yellow cab drives off and then shake my head, trying to ignore the feeling stirring in the pit of my stomach, but it's hard to ignore.

The next day, after work, Tris and I decide to grab a drink at the bar down the street from the station. It's a bar where a lot of off-duty police officers and firefighters went. It was a decent sports bar with good alcohol and most of it was half-priced for us.

We were sitting at the counter, accepting the drinks placed in front of us while watching the Blackhawks and Capitals game. The Blackhawks were down by one with another period to go and everybody in the car was getting excited and crowding around the counter, trying to get a better look at the game. Turning to glance at Tris, I notice her stiff body posture and can tell how uncomfortable she is – there are a handful of people pressed against her. "If we leave now," I lean close to her so she can hear me above the noise. "We can make it to my place in time to watch the last period of the game." She looks grateful and I take her arm, pulling her behind me as I shove through the crowd of increasingly drunk people.

Once we're outside, Tris almost sags in relief as we climb into the first cab that pulls up to the curb.

"You know…" Tris starts as she collapses onto my couch when we get to my apartment. "I don't know why we haven't ever hung out before. I mean, we've been partners for the last five years."

I shrug, handing her a water, and sitting next to her on the couch. "It never really came up, I guess."

We watch the end of the game, the Blackhawks falling by two after they pulled their goalie and the Capitals were able to score on an empty net. Tris doesn't seem as frustrated by my reaction to the game – "I told you they were inconsistent!" She smirks and I roll my eyes at her. I change the channel, looking for a movie that seems interesting – I settle on the eighth Star Wars.

Tris shifts so that she can pull her legs up onto the couch and she leans against my side. I stiffen at the contact, but then she yawns and rests her head on my shoulder. Within ten minutes she's asleep, breathing deep and steady.

I look down at her and, very gently, brush a strand of blonde hair away from her eyes. She looks so peaceful and looks her age when she's not scowling or glaring.

Eventually my arm starts get stiff so I move as carefully as I can and lift her up from the couch, one arm under her knees and the other wrapped around her back. I move carefully to my bedroom and place her on my bed, pulling the covers over her.

Before I leave the bedroom, I grab my pillow and an extra blanket and head out into the living room, making up the couch as a bed.

* * *

 _This is up much earlier than I had expected, but I've had the past few days free to do nothing but write and study. I can't promise that each chapter will be up as quickly as this one, but I will try and post a new chapter once a week._

 _Also, I am so touched by the response to the first chapter! It means so much to me!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

 **Tris**

* * *

I was barely aware of where I was when I woke up. The sheets were unfamiliar, although they smelled amazing and I could probably stay wrapped in them all day, and I was still wearing my clothes from last night.

 _Last night._

Right. I was at Tobias's. I remember coming over to watch the last period of the Blackhawks game and then we started to watch a movie before I passed out.

Getting up out of the bed, almost reluctantly (it was a comfortable bed), I head into the living room and see Tobias sitting at the small counter in the kitchen. "Hey, there's fresh coffee in the pot." He says in way of greeting.

I mumble thanks and pour a cup, loading it up with cream and sugar. Tobias quirks an eyebrow, staring at my coffee. "What?"

"Do you want coffee with your cream and sugar?" He jokes and I roll my eyes. Coffee was disgusting unless you put flavor in it. Why did he think I also ordered French vanilla or caramel coffee?

I take a seat next to Tobias and scroll through my emails on my phone for a bit, sipping at my coffee. My phone rang while I was scrolling and Jeanine's name came up. I sigh, and press my phone to my ear. "Prior." Tobias stared at me and I rolled my eyes and mouthed Jeanine's name to him. He frowned. Jeanine went on about how I needed to come in because there was a case we needed to work on and the sooner we started, the sooner we'd get it done. And then she said she was going to call Tobias in. I hung up with a promise I'd be in shortly.

"She's going to call you in five seconds." I warn him and as soon as I'm done talking, his phone rings and I smirk at him. "I have to head home to grab fresh clothes. I'll see you at work." I pat him on the shoulder as I head out.

Twenty minutes later, I'm at work in a fresh pair of jeans and a new tan blouse with cognac knee-high boots. My leather jacket is draped across the back of my chair and Tobias is already at his desk.

He gives me a warm smile and then Jeanine is calling our names, calling us into her office.

She doesn't sit down, just leans back against the edge of her desk. "There was a gang member arrested and we discovered that he was a part of a big prostitution ring that we've been following for a few months now, it's connected to a drug cartel that the FBI has been investigating and they've given us permission to investigate this part of it. We're worried that there are underage girls involved with the ring and that there are some city officials involved. We don't want to burst in and risk anybody getting hurt, so we need to go in undercover."

She makes a point to look directly at me as she speaks. Undercover. She wants us to go undercover and when she says "us" she really means me.

"No." Tobias speaks up before I can even blink. I turn to look at him and he's glaring at Jeanine. "Absolutely not. We all know how badly the undercover thing can go and how quickly it can turn dangerous."

I cross my arms over my chest, gripping my arms tightly. "This isn't a request, Eaton. This is a demand. We need Beatrice to go undercover. I would send in somebody else, but they want younger women and she can pass for a teenager."

"We have officers trained in going into situations undercover! Tell one of them to do it!" Tobias growls and I'm not completely sure how I feel about him acting protective.

Jeanine turns to look at me. "You'll need to be ready in an hour. You'll be in and out within twelve hours. We're going to give you a necklace that tech has worked on, it has a camera built in to it. As soon as we have enough evidence to enter, we'll be in."

"If she's going, I have to go." Tobias's voice is strained. "We're partners and I'm not letting her be by herself."

Jeanine sighs and fixes him an annoyed look. "There's a hotel across the street from the house she's going to. You can stay with the look out there that way if anything happens you'll be there within seconds."

It's not the most amazing compromise, but Tobias doesn't argue further. He's probably worried that if he does, Jeanine might sentence him to desk duty.

"Hey, what was that all about?" I ask as we're leaving Jeanine's office. "The whole…speaking for me thing?"

His hands are balled into fists and he looks tense. His dark blue eyes stare at me, his gaze piercing and something twists in my chest. "We're partners. I've seen how quickly those undercover assignments turn sour and truthfully, I don't feel like training a new partner." He jokes, cracking a small smile and I watch as his fists loosen.

Forty-five minutes later, we're at the hotel across the street from the posh-looking townhouse that Jeanine has had officers staked out in front of for months.

Tobias is leaning over the back of one of the officers, looking at the computer screens that show different angles of the townhouse. I come out of the bathroom, having just changed my clothes.

Christina came with us and she was prepared with the clothes I was going to need to wear – a tight black skirt that barely covered my bottom, a red tank top and a black cardigan with black heels.

I felt so uncomfortable. I wasn't use to wearing clothes this revealing and I didn't particularly like the idea that there was going to be men staring at me and judging me, judging my body.

Christina sat me down and helped me with my makeup and then twisted my hair into a messy bun. I had to look like a teenager and if I had my hair perfectly styled, it wouldn't pass.

Tobias stepped away from the computers and glanced at me and quickly looked down at his hands, at the necklace in his hands. "Here." He passes it to Christina to help me put it on, still avoiding looking at me. "It'll turn on as soon as you get to the door. If you feel like you're in danger, get out. It doesn't matter how you have to get out, just get out."

I tap my upper thigh. "I've got my escape option ready if I need it." I had a small thigh holster with a thin knife sheathed in it.

The corners of Tobias's lips curl into the semblance of a smile and there's a hint of pride in his eyes when he finally looks at me. "Good. Just be careful, Tris." He pleads and I give him a reassuring smile.

Leaving the hotel, I cross the street to the townhouse and knock on the door. It opens to reveal an older woman, looking to be in her mid-fifties. She has dark hair with gray streaks in it and has on a dark blue wrap dress. She looks me up and down and then steps to the side to let me in. "You're Hope, I presume?"

I nod, trying to come off as small and afraid.

She leads me down the short hallway and into the spacious living room, where there are about ten men, all my father's age, and there are also about thirteen girls. The oldest doesn't look more than seventeen and the youngest…she looks like she's thirteen.

I swallow back vomit as she ushers me into the room and passes me off to a man who looks to be around sixty. His eyes roam up and down my body, pausing on my legs. I resist the urge to kick him in the face.

"Come sit, sweetheart." He purrs, patting the spot next to him on the couch. Biting the insides of my cheeks, I sit on the edge of the couch next to him.

He clasps my knee with his hand and starts to move his hand further up my bare leg. I shift uncomfortably and glance down at my necklace. I really hope the necklace is on because I'm about five seconds away from breaking this guy's wrist.

"Do you want to go somewhere private?" He asks, his lips close enough to my ear that I can feel his hot breath.

I shake my head, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "We're fine here."

There's a loud bang at the front door and I feel a weight lift off my chest. The man's hand continues up my thigh and his fingers brush against the bottom of my skirt.

Grabbing his hand, I yank it off and bend all his fingers backwards. He falls off the couch, falling to his knees as he yells in pain.

The other men in the room stand up, not knowing what to do, and then the door to the living room is kicked open and Tobias is at the head of the group, searching the room for me. He sees me and looks relieved, glances down at the guy still kneeling on the floor clutching his hand and he gives me a proud smile before turning back to the rest of the room. "Chicago PD. Keep your hands visible and do not move. And get your hands off the underage girls."

Moving across the room, Tobias grabs my hand. "You good?" I nod and he gives me his jacket. I give him a smile of thanks before heading outside and hurrying across the street.

Thankfully, none of the press shows up until I'm back at the hotel and I'm thankful for that. It also gives me a sort of sick happiness that the men in that room are going to have their faces plastered all over the news in the next hour.

Christina is still in the hotel room, along with one of the other tech guys. He takes the necklace from me, giddy with happiness that it worked well, and then Christina is handing me my bag of clothes. I thank her and then head into the bathroom.

I can still feel the man's hands on my thigh and my stomach churns. Flashes of the other men touching and kissing and feeling up the younger girls run through my head. My blood starts to boil and what I wouldn't give to be able to hurt those guys for even looking at those girls.

I start to yank off my clothes and just toss them into the trashcan, shoving them down with the heels, and then change into my clothes from earlier.

When I leave the bathroom, the tech guy and all his equipment are gone, and Christina is talking to Tobias. He looks up and his face softens from the glare he had while talking to Christina. "Hey, are you okay?"

He moves to stand in front of me and Christina excuses herself to head back to the station. I nod. "I'm…fine. How are the girls?"

"None of them are hurt, most of them arrived only a few hours before we got here."

Releasing a breath, I nod again. "That's good. We should probably head back to the station, Jeanine's going to want to talk to us."

Tobias grabs my elbow, stopping me from turning around to leave. "Tris…are you okay? And don't bullshit me."

Chewing on my lip, I look at him – at his dark blue eyes that looked at me with so much concern and worry. "That guy got a little handsy, that's all." He continues to stare at me, knowing I'm holding back. "I didn't like seeing those girls there. They're not even eighteen and who knows what they've been through, even before getting here!" My bottom lip starts to tremble and I can feel hot tears falling down my face. "God, I don't even know why I'm crying now. I've seen this before, I've seen worse."

Tobias pulls me into a hug, wrapping his arms tightly around me. "You didn't experience it firsthand. You were in there with them and weren't allowed to do anything to stop things from happening."

I bury my face in his chest. God, I'm so glad I kept it together until now. I didn't need anybody else seeing me and thinking I was over emotional.

Fortunately, Tobias didn't say anything or move. He just kept his arms wrapped around me as I calmed down. After a bit, I stepped out of his embrace and went into the bathroom to wash my face with cold water and get rid of the red splotches, and most of the leftover makeup.

"If you tell anybody of me crying, I'll kick your ass." I warn as we leave.

Tobias laughs and shrugs. "If anybody finds out, I'll kick their ass."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

 **Tobias**

* * *

"Beat ya!" Tris exclaims as we round the corner near Millennium Park. She stops running, waiting for me to catch up to her and I just glare at her, bending over, and putting my hands on my knees to catch my breath. She's standing with her hands on her hips and a bright, shit-eating grin plastered on her face.

For the past few weeks, Tris and I have gone running twice a week in the morning. Apparently, we're both very competitive and it is helpful when it comes to improving our times.

Tris has been able to beat me every time so far, but I blame the fact that she's much smaller and not as muscular as I am.

"Don't get used to it." I say, standing upright. "You're not going to win all the time."

She shrugs as she turns and heads towards a street cart. I follow her and we grab waters. We take a cool-down lap around the park. It's a decently cool day, nice for late September, and people were taking advantage of the last of the cool weather – kids were running around the grass and playing tag, people were out walking their dogs, jogging and biking.

Halfway through the cool-down, Tris's phone goes off and we come to a stop. "Prior."

I cross my arms over my chest, looking around us, focusing on nobody. And then Tris's body posture changes and her hand goes to her forehead, looking annoyed. "Okay. No, I totally understand. It's fine, I'll be there. I promise." And then she hangs up.

"Who was that?" I ask as we turn to continue our walk.

"Do you remember that girl, Olivia, who was raped by the two frat guys?" She continues when I nod. "She's completely set on testifying in court but her parents didn't want her to. They don't think it'll help and that it'll only make her look even worse. Anyways, she wants me to be there for when she testifies." I glance at her, giving her a confused look. "I helped her out a lot after everything happened. She called me whenever she needed to talk, we met up a few times for coffee to talk about different things."

"She considers you to be a friend." She nods, but there's something else. "And she wants you to possibly testify."

Tris shakes her head. "No, her lawyer does. He said that if he doesn't think the jury will find the guys guilty, he wants to call me up to the stands."

I want to smile at her – for doing so much more than is needed, for having victims feel safe with her, for letting them know that she's always there for them – but this isn't something to smile at, at least not right now.

"Do you want me to go?" I ask, taking her by surprise. "For moral support." I quickly add.

She grins, her shoulders sagging as some of the tension leaves her body. "Yeah, that'd be nice."

Apparently Olivia had called Tris late, because she was testifying the next day in court. I met up with Tris outside of the court house. She gave me a stiff smile when she saw me and then we headed in. "You look good in a suit…" She comments as we take a seat on the bench in the courtroom.

I grin and wink at her. "I clean up pretty well. You don't look so bad yourself, Prior." This time, her smile is genuine.

But then she stiffens again as soon as the lawyers walk in, along with the two guys and Olivia. She doesn't relax, even after we're seated after the judge enters. I place my hand on her knee, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

Both attorneys give their opening statements, and I get the urge to punch the guys' attorney in the face.

That anger only intensifies when both guys take the stand to recount what happened that night. They both give some made up story about how she had flirted with both of them, offered to let them both sleep with her and that she had been asking for it.

At least I could control my anger, Tris wasn't as good as me. She was clenching her jaw and her entire body looked like she was about to jump across the bar and strangle both guys.

I grabbed her hand, squeezed it tightly and just shook my head while looking straight ahead.

After both boys give their testimonies, Olivia takes the stand. As she's standing up, she shoots a panicked glance at Tris who just gives her an encouraging nod. She makes her way up to the stand, takes the oath and then sits down. Her attorney asks her to give her recount of what happened the night of the party and she does, her shoulders back and her voice never wavering. Confident.

Glancing at the jury, I can see that most of them believe her and trust her, nodding as she talks and some of them even shoot disgusted glances at the boys. This is good. That's a good sign.

Then the other attorney stands up and makes his way over to stand in front of Olivia. He has a relaxed posture, his hands in his pockets. "So, Olivia…" He begins. "Your story is very convincing. And it appears that you have a lot of confidence in it because you've barely shown any emotions." Tris makes a disgusted noise and I squeeze her hand again. "Do you have a boyfriend?"

Olivia looks over at her lawyer, confused, and he just nods at her, telling her to answer the question. "No."

"Have you ever had a boyfriend?"

"No." She repeats, her voice softer this time.

The lawyer nods, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at the jury. "So, you're a 21-year-old college student who has never had a boyfriend, when suddenly…two not so bad looking guys are interested in hooking up with you."

"Objection." Her lawyer stands up and the judge looks irritated.

"Sustained. What is the relevance of this line of questioning?" The judge asks.

The lawyer turns from the jury to look at Olivia again. "I don't know, this whole situation just seems…odd. She flirted with them and apparently liked the attention they gave her."

"I flirted with them, so what? I thought that they were cute and that I might get to go out with one of them!" Olivia bursts out, taking everybody by surprise. "Every college student does the same thing! I wasn't drinking, I wasn't wearing any skimpy outfit! You want to victim blame me? Go ahead and try, but I did nothing wrong! I wasn't the one who attacked somebody smaller than me! They both raped me and had to have two football players yank them off me! My lack of past relationships does not mean that I was willing to let them have sex with me! My dating history is not important! I am an honors student who is making my way through college on scholarships, I never cared about relationships until this year. So how about instead of focusing on my nonexistent dating history and what I was doing before they raped me, you focus on them and question them as to why they felt the need to rape me!"

Her face is red when she finishes, collapsing back against the seat. Tris is squeezing my hand tightly, but when I turn to look at her, I see pride on her face.

Both guys slink down in their seats, not looking so smug anymore, and the jury looks surprised by her outburst, but I can't tell what they're thinking.

The lawyer says he has no more questions and then sits down, looking slightly on edge. The judge dismisses the jury to make their decision and then everyone else is dismissed until the decision is ready.

Olivia hurries out of the courtroom and Tris follows her, while I trail behind. "…I didn't mean to freak out like that." Olivia's voice shakes and Tris rubs her arm reassuringly. "I just…I couldn't take his questions and both of those assholes looking at me, smirking at me."

"You did amazing, Olivia." I say, halting next to Tris. "Really, you did. The jury knows that and the judge knows that. If you were going off track, the judge would've stopped you or told you to be quiet, but he didn't. He's seen way too many of these cases get thrown out because of nobody speaking out like you did."

She looks up at me. "Really?"

Both Tris and I nod together. "Yes, Olivia, you did." Tris says, smiling at her. "And I couldn't be more proud of you and the way that you stood up to him. You're a badass."

"Jury's back." Somebody announces and then we're heading back into the courtroom. As we sit down, Tris takes my hand and then forces a grin.

One of the jury members stands and she unfolds the paper in her hands. "We the jury find the defendants…guilty on all counts of sexual assault."

There are a few gasps of surprise, but other than that…there's cheering. Tris throws her arms around me and then stands up, leaning over the bar and hugging Olivia tightly. Both the guys are shell-shocked, their faces pale white and looking like they're on the verge of crying. I can't help but smirk at them as they're lead off in handcuffs.

The judge dismisses everyone and I walk behind Olivia and Tris, out of the courtroom. They're walking side by side, talking, and when we're on the steps outside, Olivia turns and gives Tris another hug and I can see tears in both of their eyes.

"Thank you, Tris, for everything." I hear Olivia say as I approach them.

Tris gives her one more hug and then Olivia heads down the steps to meet with her parents, who both embrace her tightly.

We watch them head towards a waiting cab, and then Tris turns to face me. "Thank you, Tobias, for coming with me."

I shrug, smirking at her. "Somebody had to hold you back from killing those kids."

She rolls her eyes. "I had it under control."

"Yeah, no, I don't think you did. You should really work on that, though." She laughs and shoves my shoulder. "You want to go grab dinner?"

She nods. "Yeah, I'm starving."

We head down the street to a popular pizza joint and grab a seat at the counter. We both order personal pizzas and beer. "So…" I start when our food arrives. "Have any more disastrous dates lately?"

Tris groans, dropping her slice of pizza onto the plate. "One. The guy just didn't want to talk at all. He said, maybe, ten words the entire date." I laugh and she just shakes her head, looking down at her pizza. "It's not funny. I'm so tired of being let down by dates. I just want one date to go well. Just one."

"Sounds like you haven't met me yet." I stiffen as a guy appears on the opposite side of Tris, an arrogant smirk on his face. "I'm Chris." He winks at Tris.

She forces a smile and tries to turn back to face me, but he grips her arm. "You look familiar, have I seen you around before?" He asks.

"Doubtful." Is all she says and then shoots me a look, a cry for help.

I stand up and move so that I'm standing in between Tris and Chris, who gives me a nasty look. "Back off."

Chris stands up and sets his shoulders back, trying to make himself look bigger than he really is – which is comical, because I have a good thirty pounds on him. "She can speak for herself. Who are you? Her boyfriend?"

"That doesn't matter, but if you don't walk away you're going to be missing a few teeth." I growl, and Tris grabs my bicep.

"Tobias…" She warns, trying to pull me back. "It's fine. Come on, let's go." She tugs on my arm and, after throwing another glare at Chris, I reluctantly let her pull me away.

We're standing out front of the restaurant, and I take a deep breath, trying to steady my shaking hands. I ball them into fists. I want to go back in there and punch him in the face and I get a fierce pleasure thinking about how his nose would crack against my knuckles.

And then I feel a hand on my arm, startling me and breaking me out of my little dream. "Tobias, what was that?"

Shrugging, I unclench my fists and look at her and suddenly feel like something is tugging at my chest, urging me forward. "I just…I don't know. Something came over me." The tugging sensation is still there – the same sensation I've had before around her that I've been able to ignore. Until now.

She brushes her hair behind her ear and looks at me, her eyes searching my face for, what? I don't know.

But then I'm stepping towards her, closing the small distance between us, letting the sensation take over and I'm cupping her face before crushing my lips to hers. She's taken by surprise and her hands are on my forearms, when I pull back. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have…" But she silences me by pulling me back to her, finding my lips again, as my hand winds through her hair.

"Tris…" I breathe against her lips, pressing my forehead to hers. She just shakes her head, her eyes closed. "Don't." Is all she says as she pulls me towards a cab.

* * *

 **I really hate myself for how long it took to get this up, and I am so sorry! I have been busy and just...in a terrible mood and its affected my motivation to do any kind of writing. But I finished this chapter and I hope to have the next one up soon.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

 **Tris**

* * *

I wake up, disoriented for a few moments, before I realize that I'm in my apartment. Slowly, I turn to my other side and Tobias is asleep, his back bare – except for the tattoos curling around his ribcage and marking up his entire back. The details are so intricate I get the urge to run my fingers over the tattoos, but I know it'll wake him.

Carefully, I slide out from under the covers and grab a new pair of underwear, a pair of shorts and one of my sweatshirts. I manage to be quiet while changing and then carefully tip-toe out of the bedroom.

I make my way to the bathroom and shut the door behind me, taking a deep breath and then turning the faucet on. I don't let it warm up before splashing some water on my face.

 _Tobias and I slept together…_

I stare at my reflection in the mirror above the sink and tried to figure out how I felt about it. I didn't feel guilty – because I knew that there was _something_ there between us – and I sure as hell don't regret it.

But I was worried. I don't want last night to have screwed up our work dynamic. We were partners and worked really well together. I didn't want things to become awkward between us and put our lives and other people's lives at risk.

Exiting the bathroom, I head into the kitchen and grab a water bottle from the fridge. "Hey…" I look up as Tobias walks out of the bedroom, his shirt from last night hanging open and his pants hanging loosely around his waist.

"Hey." I greet back, lifting myself up onto the counter.

"Got anything to eat?" He asks casually. He makes his way around the counter and starts to rummage through my cabinets. He pulls down a box of Cocoa Pebbles. "Really?" He asks, smirking.

"What? I like them!" I defend myself, offended that he's picking fun at my choice in cereal. "They're good."

He doesn't say anything else, just grabs the box and then looks for a bowl. I reach behind my head into the cabinet and pull a bowl down, handing it to him. "So about last night…" He pauses pouring the cereal into the bowl and looks at me from the corner of his eye. "It was great, really, but I don't think it should happen again."

"I think that's reasonable." He shrugs, going back to pouring his cereal.

I leave him to his cereal and head into my bedroom to change and get ready for work. I change into a pair of jeans, brown boots, and a black sweater, pulling my hair up into a ponytail.

By the time I reemerge into the living room, he's gone. I grab my cell phone and keys and head out the door to work.

Tobias is already at work, sitting at his desk, by the time I get there. I stare at him as I sit down at my desk, and he just shrugs, a knowing smile on his face. I throw a pen at his face.

"Prior, I need you in my office." Jeanine calls, poking her head out from her office. Shoving back from my desk, I head towards the office and shut the door when I'm inside. "Is it true that you went to a trial yesterday for a rape victim?" I nod and she sighs, frustrated. "Great, well we just got a call that your involvement in the case may have screwed over the results."

I scoff, shaking my head. "I didn't do anything to change the verdict. The only involvement I had was being there for Olivia when she needed somebody to talk to. I didn't walk her through what to say at the trial – everything she said, she said herself. I didn't coach her."

Jeanine sighs, picking up the desk phone. "Alright, well, as long as you didn't do anything that might get the case overturned…You're dismissed."

When I'm back at my desk, Tobias is hanging up the phone. "What did she want you for?"

I shake my head, switching my computer on. "It was something stupid. Apparently either the defense attorney or the boys' parents from yesterday's trial thought that I may have coached Olivia on what to say to get the jury to rule in her favor."

"Hey! A body was just found near East 63rd street, they need you two to check it out." Christina appears from out of nowhere, her face looking ashen. "It's not pretty." She sighs.

Sighing, I stand up and grab my jacket from the back of my chair. "It never is." I squeeze her hand as I pass by her and Tobias is following closely behind me. "I'm driving." I declare as we step outside.

He rolls his eyes but doesn't argue, climbing into the passenger seat of the car.

East 63rd street is only a couple of blocks from the station, so it doesn't take too long to get there. When we get out of the car, there's a small crowd surrounding the scene, standing behind the yellow police tape. Tobias and I flashed our badges to the police already on the scene, and Tobias held up the tape for me to pass under.

"Detectives." An older officer address myself and Tobias, beckoning us over to him.

"Chief." Tobias nods at him and I pull my jacket over my nose, trying to block out the smell of the body at my feet. Even in the open air I can still smell it. "What happened?"

The chief sighs, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at the body. "John Doe, about twenty-three, seems to have been dead for a few hours. He has a few stab wounds near both of his ribs, bruising around the wrists and ankles, bloodshot eyes…"

I knelt, swallowing back bile – you just never got used to seeing a dead body – and accepted a latex glove from the chief. I pulled the body's arm up, looking at the wrist. "These look like rope burns."

"Rope burns?" Tobias asked, looking up at him I nod. "You're sure."

"Definitely sure. I've seen those kinds of marks before, they're consistent with rope. And the same ones are on his ankles so I think it is safe to say that he was definitely tied up."

"Rape?" Tobias asks and I just shrug.

"It won't be clear until the body gets to the medical examiner. It could've been consensual or it could've been from whoever stabbed him and dumped him here."

The chief laughs once, no humor in it. "Kids these days and their weird kinks." He grumbles and then, shaking both our hands, heads off to his officers.

Tobias and I exchange glances and I fight back a smile. He smiles at me and I get a brief flashback from last night and my cheeks suddenly become overheated at the memory. "What?" He asks and I just shake my head, turning away from him.

After a few more minutes, asking a few of the surrounding onlookers if they witnessed anything, we're left with nothing – no hints, no leads, nothing. The only thing we can rely on right now is the medical examiner finding something.

By the time we return to the station, the medical examiner is ready for us. The medical examiner was a good friend of mine and I was trying to get him to take Christina out on a date, but he seemed to be convinced that she would turn him down – which I knew, she would not because she likes him as much as he does.

"What do you have, Will?" I asked as Tobias and I stepped into the examination room. We took up spots next to each other, on the opposite side of the table from Will.

"He died about two days ago, cause of death is an overdose on pain medication…." Will shakes his head in amazement but continues. "You were right about the rope burns, Tris. He had to have been tied up for a few days though, because there are signs of a struggle, he's extremely dehydrated and he was sodomized with a knife…"

I choke back a surprised gasp. "A knife? Seriously?"

Will nods, looking just as disturbed as I feel. "He used the same knife to make the stab wounds on both sides of his ribs."

"Were the stab wounds done before or after he was killed?" Tobias asks, his arms crossed tightly across his chest, his eyebrows furrowed as he stares at the body.

"Hard to tell, but from the looks of it, it seems more likely that they were done after he was killed."

Tobias and I thank him and then head upstairs to discuss everything with Jeanine. "Hey, are you okay?" I ask, grabbing Tobias's arm to stop him from walking up the steps – we're in the stairwell and there's nobody around except us.

His eyebrows are still furrowed and he looks stressed. Given we had just stared at a dead body for a bit and had no leads about what happened…but still, he's seen worse.

"I'm fine just…didn't really expect to see a dead body, that's all." My hand is still on his arm and I drop it when he glances down at it. "And I'm frustrated that we don't have any leads." He adds on before starting up the steps.

Christina is waiting for us when we get back to the office and she doesn't look any better than earlier. "Good news." She says, and it's almost comical how her words don't match her facial expression. "I did some research, and I found a few similar cases that where it was a man was sodomized with a knife, rope burns on his wrists and ankles and stabbed multiple times on both sides of his ribs." Tobias suddenly perks up beside me. "And they had arrested the guy who did it – DNA matched him and everything."

I blinked a few times, trying to comprehend what she was saying. "Wait…so they caught him? So, he's in prison?"

A small smile splayed out on Christina's lips and she shook her head. "He was released less than a year ago, and moved to Chicago. He lived right near Millennium Park." Oh, fantastic. He's a murderer and he has money.

"So why aren't we arresting him?" Tobias demands, looking like he's ready to go run and take the guy down himself right now.

And then it hit me. "You said 'lived' near Millennium…do you mean…?"

"He killed himself about two months after he was released." Christina's face fell as she spoke and Tobias just shook his head in disbelief. "But I did find something…interesting."

She sits down at her computer and Tobias and I lean over the back of her chair, watching the screen as she quickly types away at the keyboard. She pulls up a bunch of files, filling the screen with them, and then pulls one up with a picture of an older woman, about fifty, with short blonde hair and gray eyes. She reminds me of a teacher I had back in elementary school. "Her name's Rita – she visited this guy, Leonard, in prison pretty much every week. She was on his visitor's list and list of people who wrote to him."

"She wrote to him even though she visited him?" I asked, confused.

Christina nodded. "Yeah, and from the few letters they had collected, it looks like she was praising him for the murders – saying what he was doing was brave and heroic, that people like him were wrongfully treated in our justice system."

"It sounds like she's in love with him." Tobias sneers, disgust in his voice. "Where does she live?"

She lists off an address in a run-down part of the city and I look over at Tobias. "Feel like paying her a visit?" Tobias is already heading towards the door and I'm jogging to keep up with him.

Twenty minutes later, Tobias was banging on the dilapidated door of a rundown townhouse. There were some loud crashes on the other side of the door and then a woman opens the door – she looks much older than the picture Christina showed us, her hair all gray and extremely thing. "What do you want?" She asks followed by a coughing fit.

"I'm Detective Prior and this is Detective Eaton, we're with the Chicago Special Victims Unit and we had a few questions for you…"

She suddenly straightens and a quick flash of fear is in her eyes and then it's gone, replaced by anger. "Whatever you want, I can't help."

"Actually, you can." Tobias says, slamming his hand against the door as the woman tried to shut it on us. "You seemed to be very close to that psychopath Leonard, Rita, and we'd like to have a few words with you."

She shakes her head, avoiding eye contact with us. "He wasn't a psychopath – he was doing humanity a favor…" She looks back up at us, her eyes hardening as she stares at us. "I was just finishing his job."

Rolling my eyes, I step back as Tobias orders her to turn around and cuffs her hands, mirandizing her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

 **Tobias**

* * *

"Alright, Eaton, your time is up." A deep, rumbling voice yells across the gym. "I need to close down for the night." An older gentleman walks up to me as I catch the punching bag in between my hands to stop it from moving. I'm breathing heavily and can feel sweat covering my body. "It's been a long time since I've seen you this worked up."

I shrug, ripping the gloves off my hands and stretching my fingers out. "It's just the job – a lot of stress."

He quirks an eyebrow at me, a knowing smile on his face. "It's more than that, Tobias." But he doesn't say anything else, he just shakes his head and walks away.

Tossing my gloves into my gym bag, I zip it up and then toss it over my shoulder and head out of the gym into the night.

I'm just stepping into my apartment when my cell phone rings. Tris's name is on the caller ID. "Hello?" I shut the door behind me, locking it and dropping my bag onto the floor.

"Hey, I know it's late and I'm sorry if I was just waking you up. But we have a case." Holding the phone away from my face, I let out an annoyed groan. I was disgusting and really wanted to shower and then just go to bed – tomorrow was supposed to be my day off.

"I'll be at the station in twenty." I promise her and then hang up. Twenty minutes gives me enough time to get a quick two-minute shower in and change out of my gym clothes and into a clean pair of jeans and a new shirt and make it to the station in less than ten minutes.

Christina greets me outside and walks with me up the steps to our office. "A kid's missing." She starts to fill me in on the case. "She's about nine-years-old and has been missing for almost five hours…"

"Wait…hold up. _Eight hours_? The kid has been missing for eight hours and we're just now hearing about this?"

She nods and I can see a frown forming on her face as she passed through the door that I'm holding open for her. "Her parents tried looking for her by themselves, they said they didn't want to get the police involved because they thought that maybe she was just hiding out with some of her friends, but they've called around to every single one of her friends and she's not with any of them."

Once we're in the office, I see Tris standing with the parents and talking to them. Well – trying to talk to them. They were both freaking out, the mom was crying and the dad was trying to console his wife while also keeping calm, but his eyes were wide with panic.

"Hey." I stand next to Tris and she nods in greeting. "I'm Detective Eaton." I extend my hand to the father and he shakes it. "We're going to do everything that we can to find your daughter and get her home. But I need you both to know that this would have been a lot easier if you had come to us sooner and not waited."

I didn't want to sound like a dick, but it was true. There was a limited amount of time with missing kids that we wanted to work with because after a certain amount of time, we had to consider the kids to either be dead or gone forever.

"Did Brittney talk to anybody new to the neighborhood? A kid? Adult?" Tris asked, shooting me an annoyed glare. "Maybe she was IM'ing with somebody she met online?"

Brittney's mother shook her head, wiping her eyes again. "No, she doesn't use IM and we haven't had any new neighbors in months."

"Where was the last place you saw her?" I asked.

The dad speaks up. "We dropped her off at school this morning and then she didn't come home – she usually takes the bus, unless my wife or I pick her up when we're not working – but when we both got home, she wasn't there. We went to our neighbors, asking if they'd seen her and nobody had, so we called her friends' parents and none of them had seen her."

"Do you know her bus driver's name?" He shakes his head and I sigh, turning to look at Christina. "Call her school and see if you can get her bus driver's name and whether they can tell us if she was on the bus." Christina nods and then heads off.

We asked the parents a few more questions and then we headed off to meet up with Christina and I ordered a passing police officer to send out an APB on the girl with her full description.

Christina was on the phone when we walked into her private cave and she held up a finger and then began to type furiously on her keyboard. She hung up the phone.

"She got on her bus after school and the bus driver let her off at her stop, but the problem is, her bus stop is at the end of her street and he doesn't have time to stop and wait to make sure every kid gets home."

Tris ran her fingers through her hair, frustrated. "Are there any security cameras near her bus stop? She lives in a row of townhouses, so it's more than likely that there are security cameras somewhere."

She nodded and then got to work, typing and clicking things on the screen so quickly that I was losing track of what she was doing.

Within seconds, she has video feeds pop up on the screen and she's rewinding all of them. "Her parents said that she gets off the bus around 3:15." I tell her, leaning over the back of her chair, and trying to focus on each screen.

"There…" She points to a figure on the screen and Brittney's form appears and I can see her backpack and she turns to wave to the bus driver. She starts to head down the street when another person appears behind her, a man that looks to be about forty-years-old, and starts to follow her. Christina types something in her keyboard and suddenly one video feed appears and we can see the front of Brittney's face.

I can't gather too much from the guy's figure except for balding and a slight limp in his step. Other than that, he has a hat covering his face and knows to avoid looking up. "He's done this before…" I note.

"How do you know?" Tris asks.

Christina pauses the video and zooms in on the man. "He's hunching over and keeping his head down. He knows there are cameras in the area and he knows how to avoid them."

Tris cusses under her breath. "Check the sex offender registry and compile a list of everybody on it that lives on that street and one over."

Ever true to her reputation, Christina was incredibly quick – finding and making up a list in less than five minutes. Tris and I thanked her and were both relieved to find that there were only eight people on the list – three were women, which shortened the list to five. We left the girl's parents in the hands of one of the officers and headed out.

It was close to two in the morning and the temperature had dropped considerably since I left the gym earlier. Even being this late, there was still people walking around Chicago, acting like it wasn't even close to being ten at night.

We made it to the first house and banged on the apartment door, announcing ourselves. It took a few minutes, but soon there was groaning and grumbling coming from the other side and a man peaks his head out, squinting against the harsh hallway lighting. "Brian Williams?" I ask and he nods. "Can we come in?" He steps aside and opens the door wider for us.

Tris heads towards the bedroom while I scan the main living area and bathroom, checking the closet and laundry room. "What's this about?" He asks.

"You wouldn't happen to have a nine-year-old girl hiding out in here, do you?" I ask, rifling through his closet.

When he speaks, he sounds extremely offended. "Absolutely not! I'm not allowed to be near children, why the hell would I be hiding one in here?"

I shrug, looking at him carefully. "Just curious." Tris comes out of the bedroom, shaking her head. "Alright, well, we apologize for waking you." And then we leave and head two buildings over.

We repeat the same process over again, three more times, and each time we turn up empty handed. I'm getting increasingly frustrated, the clock ticking down.

"Hey." Tris stops me as I'm stepping up onto the sidewalk in front of the last building. "We're going to find her." She reassures me, grabbing my hand to stop me from walking away. "We'll find her and she'll go home, safe."

Shaking my head, I ignore the warmth building where her hand is holding mine. "We're running out of time. What if we don't find her? Or we do, but she's dead?"

"We're doing the best we can with what we have available to us." She says and then drops my hand. "Now let's go and get this guy cleared."

Stopping at the fourth floor of the apartment building, I bang my fist against the door, announcing ourselves and calling for him. "James Kenney? Open up, Chicago PD!" There's a few quiet moments and then stumbling, a short squeal followed by a shush. Tris and I exchange glances and then I'm kicking the door in.

James is standing in the living space, frozen, with his hands up in front of him. "Woah, whoa! What are you doing?! You can't just kick my door down!"

Tris has her gun trained on him and I quickly follow while also scanning the vicinity. "Who else is in here?!" I demand. "We know there's somebody else in here, so don't lie."

He's trying to catch his breath and his eyes are wide with excitement and fear, sweating dripping down from his forehead. "There's nobody here." Is all he says.

I glance at Tris, who nods and heads into the bedroom off to her right. James and I remain in the living room, facing each other, my gun still pointed at his chest. One movement. One movement and he'll be dead.

"Tobias!" Tris calls and she's coming out of the bedroom, a small figure in her arms. Brittney. "She's alive."

"Give her to me." I say and Tris and I switch positions – I take the girl in my arms and Tris trains her gun on James, until she's close enough to yank his arms behind his back and handcuff him, mirandizing him in the process. She makes a quick call into the precinct and calls for an ambulance and backup.

Glaring at James, I say, "I thought boys were your thing, James."

He's staring at Brittney and I see red in my vision, surrounding his form. "I'll take what I can get." Tris twists his arms a little to cause a little bit of pain and he groans.

Sirens sound in the distance and I can see red and blue lights bouncing off the nearby buildings. "You got it from here?" I ask and she nods. I want to get Brittney out of here, away from his staring. I turn away and head out the door, passing by two officers coming up the steps. They both nod to me and I give them the room number.

Downstairs, there's a waiting ambulance and a medic meets me halfway. "He hid her in the closet and she has a lot of cuts." I tell the medic as we head towards the ambulance. Tris had wrapped her in a bed sheet, but her blood was seeping through the bedsheets. "I don't know how many times, but she's still bleeding."

I place Brittney down on the stretcher gently and watch as the medic unwraps the bedsheet and I have to gag back vomit when I see her body – she's in nothing but a tiny pair of shorts and a tank top and she has lashes marking her body, up and down her arms and legs, some on her face. "I'll take it from here." The medic says as she and the other medic lift the stretcher into the back of the ambulance and slam the doors shut.

I call Jeanine and tell her we found Brittney and tell her to tell the girl's parents to meet her at the hospital.

After I hang up, Tris is already out of the building and shoving James into the back of one of the police cruisers. She shuts the door and then glances up in my direction.

My stomach is still twisting, the images of Brittney's injuries flashing through my head and I clench my hands tightly. I want, so badly, to yank James out of the police car and throw him onto the ground and pummel his face in. I want it so bad, I can feel the way my fists would connect with his face and get a sick sort of satisfaction out of imaging the sound of him moaning in pain.

I'm pulled from my daydream by a warm hand touching my arm. "Hey." Tris looks up at me, her blue eyes wide with worry. "Calm down." Is all she says.

"I am calm." I lie through clenched teeth.

She just rolls her eyes and her hands moves to my wrist. "No, you're not. And this situation will not be made okay by you kicking the shit out of James. It'll make you look bad and it'll make the police department look bad. So, you're going to have to stow it for now."

She was right – of course she was right.

Her hand still gripped my wrist and I could feel the tension in her hand. I didn't know if it was because she still worried about me trying to go after James or if she was trying to hold herself back.

"Come on." I grab her hand, pulling her (and myself) away from the scene. "I know somewhere we can go to ignore all of this."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

 **Tris**

* * *

We're standing at the edge of the pier, leaning against the railings. The Ferris wheel is behind us, dark and still, and there's barely anybody out. The city lights are visible over the water and I have to admit…it is really calming.

Although, I never would be here alone at four in the morning. But if this was where Tobias came to calm down, I don't really think he would have anything to fear – he radiates strength.

Glancing at him from the corner of my eye, I can see that his eyes are closed and I take the free time to really look at him – his arms and how toned and muscular they are, his shirt hugging his arms just right, the back muscles that are also visible and the top of his tattoo peeking out of the collar of his shirt. The same tattoo that I ran my fingers along…

"Stop staring at me." He mumbles, making me jump.

I'm glad its still dark out because I can feel my face getting warm and just know that I'm blushing. "I wasn't staring." I lie.

Tobias just laughs, shaking his head.

He turns to look at me, his smile disappearing and he looks like he's about to say something, but he's interrupted by my phone. "Please tell me that isn't Jeanine." He groans, dropping his head.

I shake my head. "No, it's my neighbor." As soon as I pressed talk, I heard screaming and yelling and I knew what was wrong. "We need to get to my apartment. Now." I yank Tobias by the arm, dragging him towards the car.

"Tris, what is going on?" The one thing I loved about Tobias was his ability to understand when something was serious. He may not understand what the hell was happening or why I was panicking, but he was still speeding off in the direction of my apartment.

"I gave my neighbor my phone number because she's had problems with her ex – he was abusive in the relationship and she broke up with him and she's been worried about him stalking her. She just got a restraining order against him, but it hasn't been accepted yet. I told her to call me in case anything happened and all I heard when she called was screaming."

As soon as we pulled up outside of my apartment building, I threw myself out of the car and into the building, running up the steps.

I bang on the door. "Chicago PD! Open the door!" There's a muted thud and then a pained groan.

I twist the handle and swing the door open. "Get the fuck out!" The guy yells, standing in the hallway. I move closer to him, ignoring the fact that I left my gun in the car. Dammit. "You can't be in here!"

My neighbor, Elise, is on the floor with her legs curled into her chest. The guy started to charge towards me, shoving me back towards the door. "Get the hell out!" He screamed at me and I could smell a slight undertone of vodka. Fantastic – he was abusive and drunk.

I resist him and then he swings his hand, his fist connecting with my eyebrow after I tried to duck it. It hurts…badly. "Son of a bitch…" I don't have enough time to react before Tobias is yanking me back, away from the guy and then he's punched him – hard enough to knock him out. The guy just drops to the floor, out cold. Tobias turns to look at me. "Are you okay?" He scans over my body and then my face. "You're cut…"

I shake him off and then hurry over to Elise, kneeling. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

She shakes her head, sitting up. Her face is streaked with tears and she's shaking. "He just shoved me and I fell and hit my shoulder."

I help her up. "He's not going to be able to get anywhere near you again. There's no way any judge will let him walk after breaking in and then hitting a cop." I reassure her. Tobias is handcuffing the guy, not being very gentle with him.

Elise takes a seat at her kitchen table and I grab a towel and a handful of ice to make an ice-pack for her shoulder. She gives me a grateful smile and takes it, pressing it against her shoulder.

"Max is on his way to come pick up this prick." Tobias informs me, nodding towards the unconscious guy.

"You're going to get your ass chewed out for knocking him out." I can't help but smile.

He shrugs. "He hit you. I wasn't going to let that slide." He focuses back on me and his mouth drops into a frown. Stepping closer, he places his hands on either side of my face and tilts my head back so that I'm looking up at him. His thumb lightly brushes the cut and I wince.

There's a knock at the door and then Max steps in, another officer behind him. He takes one look at the passed-out guy and then gives Tobias an annoyed look. "Really, Eaton?"

Tobias shrugs, dropping his hands from my face. "He deserved it." The uniformed officer yanks the guy to his feet and then he's pushing him out the door.

Max comes over, gives me one look, nods and then turns to Elise. A dismissal.

"Come on." Tobias grabs my hand and leads me next door to my apartment. I unlock the door and Tobias pulls a chair out from the kitchen table. "Sit." He orders and I do.

He grabs a hand-towel from the kitchen and runs it under the water and then, when he's standing in front of me again, he kneels so that we're at eye level.

He gently presses the wet part of the towel against my cut and I wince. "Honestly, Tobias, it is just a cut – it'll heal in like two days." He doesn't say anything, just keeps gently dabbing at my cut.

"I could kill him." Tobias growls and there's hate in his eyes.

I grab his hand, pulling it away from my forehead. "He's going away. He won't be able to even think about Elise."

Tobias shakes his head. "I'm glad he won't be able to hurt her anymore, but that's not why I want to kill him." He finishes cleaning the cut and crumples the towel up in his hands. "He hit you."

Rolling my eyes, I place a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "He hit me once and it barely did any lasting damage. I'm fine and that's not a good enough reason to turn murderous."

He drops his head, his knuckles turning white as he clenches his hands into fists. "It doesn't matter."

Ignoring the tightness in my chest, I grab his hands and try to uncurl them. "Okay, that's enough. You've had a lot to deal with the past…twenty hours. You're tired and I can understand your frustration. But you can't take it out on somebody. At least not physically." And then I get an idea that is either going to turn out great…or turn out terribly. "Actually, I have another way you – well, both of us – can get our frustrations out in a safe manner."

He looks at me, confused, for a moment before he understands what I was talking about. "You said that us sleeping together was a one-time thing."

Shrugging, I stand up from the chair. "It was. But maybe it doesn't have to be. Neither of us are dating anybody and you can't say that last time wasn't fun and it is a healthy way to get frustrations out."

"But we're not…?" He asks, standing up.

I shake my head. "We're not exclusive and we don't have to tell anybody that we're hooking up. If either of us wants to stop at any time, we can. Nothing serious."

My stomach tightens, worrying about his response. He looks like he wants to accept and I know he feels the same way I do, but maybe he believes it will screw up our work ethic or mess with our heads.

But then he grabs me by the waist, pulling me against him, and crushes his lips against mine – hungry and greedy. This Tobias was completely different from the one who I first slept with.

I let him take charge, let his hands roam my body and peel off my jacket and blouse. I unbutton his shirt and push it off his shoulders and then he's picking me up by the backs of my thighs. "Bedroom." He growls against my lips.

"Door right behind you." I breathe, twisting my fingers in his hair.

Holding me up with one arm, he reaches behind him and opens my bedroom door and then wraps his arm around me again as he lowers himself onto the edge of my bed.

"You seem very chipper this morning." Christina observes, perched on the edge of my desk while I'm seated in my chair.

I shrug, flipping through the file on my desk. "Just woke up feeling refreshed, that's all." I lie easily, avoiding her gaze.

She snorts. "Yeah, okay."

Just then, Will walks by on his way to talk to Tobias. Christina and Will make eye contact and then Christina quickly looks away, the flush barely noticeable on her dark skin. "Okay, what was that about?" I ask.

Christina shrugs. "We kind of went out on a date the other night…and then had sex."

My hand smacks over my mouth in surprise, an involuntary reaction. "You did not!" Christina hisses at me to keep my voice down, but I can't. I'm too excited for her – she has been pining over Will for months and I am so proud of her.

Part of me really wants to tell her about me and Tobias, but I don't know if he'd be okay with me telling her. Is he going to tell his friends?

Oh, God. Max was one of his friends and he was my superior…

No, Tobias would never do that.

I'm shaken from my worries when Jeanine steps out of her office, beckoning to Tobias and myself. "Prior, Eaton – my office, now."

Christina hops off my desk and I make my way to Jeanine's office, followed closely behind by Tobias.

"You're needed at the local elementary school. One of the teachers there believes that a student of his is being abused and we're needed to check it out. Go get the teacher's explanation and I'm working on getting a warrant."

She takes a seat at her desk, dismissing us.

Tobias is walking beside me, close enough where our arms brush against each other and then, once we're out of Jeanine's office, I feel his hand on my lower back.

I immediately stiffen and turn to look at him. "No grab-ass in the office." I hiss, smacking his hand away.

He just smirks and grabs his jacket off the back of his chair. "Ready to go, partner?" He asks, quirking an eyebrow. I stare at him and just shake my head, following him out of the precinct.

* * *

 _This took forever to post, and I'm so sorry about that. I just haven't had any energy to write, but I am on summer break so I should have a little more time to write - but I am currently in the process of getting a 2nd job, so I'm going to be working 6 days a week but I will try to find time to write! I promise!_


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

 **Tobias**

* * *

"You're going to make people suspicious if you don't stop with the grab-ass and flirting." Tris grunts, annoyed, as we make our way to one of the many public schools in our precinct. "There's enough problems going on and I don't need everybody in the office in my business."

I just shook my head, keeping my eyes on the road. "It was one touch and nobody even saw. You can relax." She scoffs, turning her head to look out the window. "And I do not flirt with you."

Tris laughs and looks at me, her eyebrow quirked. "You totally do flirt with me!"

"I do not!" I shoot back, defensive.

She shakes her head. "You do – and it has been going on for a while. Christina's pointed it out before, thinking that we were secretly hooking up." She mumbles something else under her breath that sounds like "little did she know", but I choose to ignore it.

We're at the school, so I have a chance to change the subject and we both shift into detective-mode as soon as we step out of the car.

The principal is waiting for us at the top of the steps and she greets up both and then leads us to the classroom.

The school day just ended so the halls are just about empty and the classroom we're led to is completely empty except for the teacher and a small child. The child turns to look at us as soon as we enter the room, and it's a boy that looks to be about seven or eight-years-old. He has shaggy blonde hair and big, round green eyes that look terrified right now.

There's a look in his eyes that I remember too well, and the way that he's holding himself…it's familiar.

If the body language wasn't a tip-off, the cut lip and yellowing bruises along his arms are a huge giveaway and I swallow back bile.

"Fuck…" Tris says under her breath. "We don't even need to question the teacher, we should get him to a hospital."

She looks up at me, waiting for me to give directions. Sometimes I forget that I'm technically her superior, even though we're partners – we've always worked side-by-side and did things in agreement. But I outrank her.

I want to tell her that we can take him to the hospital and that there's a good chance he'll be taken away from whoever is hurting him. But I know the system. I know the rules.

It won't be that easy.

"We need to talk to him." I glance at her. "You talk to the teacher, I'll talk to the boy." She opened her mouth like she wanted to protest. "I can probably get more out of him than you'd be able to."

Tris fixes me a confused look but doesn't argue. She calls the teacher over and I walk over to where the kid is sitting, pulling a chair out to sit in front of him so that we're eye level.

"Brent?" I ask as I sit down. He glances up at me through his eyelashes, his shoulders hunched over. "I'm Detective Eaton. Your teacher called us because she was worried about you. I see that you have a cut on your lip, where did you get that?"

He doesn't answer right away, just stares down at his lap and wrings his hands nervously. "I fell." He whispers, barely audible.

"And what about the bruises on your arms?"

Again, he takes a bit to answer and his answer sounds too rehearsed. "My brother and I were wrestling and I bruise easily."

I knew from looking at him that he wasn't going to give anything away if he really was being abused – especially if his abuser was one of his parents.

Tris and the teacher are done talking and are both staring at the two of us. I shake my head. "Hey, Brent, why don't you come to the station with me and we can call your parents to let them know that you're with us."

"Do I get to ride in a real police car?" He asks and he sounds more like a normal child. I smile and nod. "Can I press the siren button?" I promise him, that if he answers my questions, he can. "Okay."

His excitement only grows as we make our way to the car. He climbs into the front and I sit in the driver's seat, showing him what each button does and which one turns on the lights and which one turns on the sirens. I show him what the laptops are for and I can see him relax the longer I talk to him.

My biggest fear was that he would shut down again once we got to the station, but he doesn't. If anything, he gets even more excited seeing a bunch of uniformed officers.

I steer him towards one of the rooms where we question kids – it has a one-way mirror, but it's warmer than the normal interrogation rooms. It has a tan carpet, opened windows, and has a couch, a small table for the kids to draw on and a chest of other toys.

We sit down at the table and he reaches for the crayons. "So, Brent. Can you tell me where you got the bruises?" He's silent, focusing on his drawing of the police car he was just in. "If I tell you something about myself, can you answer my question?" The silence drags on. "When I was younger, about your age, I lived with both my parents. But the problem was, my parents argued – a lot. Every night when my dad got home from work, he would start to scream at my mom and she ended up leaving without me. He had to find someone else to yell at, so he started to yell at me…and then he started to hit me. I would go to school wearing clothes to cover all the bruises, but the adults caught on. They wanted to help me, they were worried about me."

Brent stopped drawing at some point while I was talking, and now he looked up at me. "What happened?" He asked, pushing his hair out of his eyes.

"I went to live with my mom and my dad was arrested and has been locked away ever since. And nobody ever hurt me after that…because I complied with the police and knew they only wanted to help."

There's a knock at the window and I get up, leaving Brent to his drawing.

Jeanine was standing in the viewing room with Tori, the ADA. Tori worked closely with us and she didn't look happy right now. "You're interviewing a child without a parent or guardian present? Even if he did give everything up, we wouldn't be able to do anything with it, Tobias! You know that!"

"So, we're supposed to wait for the parents to get here and possibly make him change his mind about ratting them out?" Tris speaks up, scaring me. I didn't realize she was in the room. She looks at me, her blue eyes sad for a split second. "If they are the ones abusing him, there's no way he'll say anything in front of them."

Christina comes into the room, followed by an older couple and a teenage boy who looks a lot like Brent. "These are Denise and Robert, Brent's parents."

I quickly scan the parents over. They're both well dressed and don't seem like there's anything wrong with them. The teenager, however, looks like a cliché moody teen. His hair's shaggy, swooped to one side over his eye, and he's wearing dark (but expensive) clothes. The mother looks completely worried, stress making her look older than she probably is.

"You have no reason to be holding him here and we're going to take him home." The dad says as I watch the mom hurry into the room. Brent drops his crayons and runs into his mother's arms.

Not what I was expecting.

His dad goes into the room next and Brent has the same exact reaction, but this time he excitedly shows off his drawing. I flick the voice-com on and catch the tail end of their conversation.

"…and I got to turn on the sirens and ride in the police car! I want to be a police officer!" Brent is gushing to his parents and they both smile and his dad ruffles his hair.

I glance over at Tris and she looks just as surprised as I do. And then she looks at Brent's brother. "Don't you want to go see your brother?" She asks.

He shrugs. "Not really."

Tris and I exchange looks. I step closer to her so that only she can hear me whisper, "Pull the parents out of there and have the brother talk to Brent."

She does just that, and the parents leave the room – looking rather irritated – and we manage to coax the brother into the room and my eyes are glued onto him the entire time.

Brent's face is still radiating excitement from when he was talking to his parents, but as soon as he sees his brother, the excitement disappears and he suddenly hunches in on himself and makes himself smaller.

"Shit…" Tris gasps and I just shake my head.

"I did not expect that…" Tori says, appearing between myself and Tris. She shakes her head at the brothers and then turns to me. "Get Christina to pull Brent's medical records and I'll get Jeanine to distract the parents with some paperwork or something. We need to interview the older brother." She looked at Tris when she said that.

"Wait…why is Tris the one to talk to him?" I ask and Tris just gives me an annoyed look.

Tori sighs and shakes her head. "You bonded with the younger brother and he knows that. He won't talk to you. But he will talk to a young and pretty detective."

I just roll my eyes and head out of the room, heading towards Christina's personal cave.

She's sitting in front of her computer set-up and swivels around in her chair when I enter. "And what can I do for you, Eaton?"

"Tori needs you to pull the medical records for Brent." She tilts her head, intrigued. "The parents aren't the ones possibly abusing him, it's more than likely his older brother. If it is him, the parents won't tell us but his medical records will."

She nods and starts to type away at her computer. "Okay, so in the past year he's been admitted to the hospital four times. The first two times were for minor injuries – a sprained ankle and wrist – but the last two times were worse. One was for a concussion and the other was for a broken arm."

"Shouldn't the doctors have called us? One kid going into the ER four times in the same year is something that should raise red flags…"

Christina shook her head. "Well when the dad works at the hospital and can get people to ignore it…"

Fantastic. So the parents knew something was happening but weren't doing anything about it.

She printed the records out and I thanked her, heading back to Tori. Jeanine and Tori had the parents in one interrogation room and I knocked on the glass to get their attention. They both excuse themselves and as soon as they're out of the room, I hand them the file.

"This is enough probable cause to interview the older brother, but he's still going to need an adult in the room." Tori states. "Talk to the parents first and then you can bring the older brother in." Tori sighs, rubbing her temples. "This might take a while."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

 **Tris**

* * *

The older brother was a pain in my ass. If I wouldn't lose my job and possibly go to jail, I would smack him across his face. He was so disrespectful – not only to myself and Jeanine, but also to his parents.

My God, was he disrespectful to his parents. He talked about them like they were the single worst people in the world and that having to speak to and about them was one of the most pointless things ever.

When Jeanine and I left the interrogation room, my hands were balled so tightly my nails were pinching my skin and I wanted to punch something.

Tobias reached out and placed a hand on my arm, reminding me to calm down and keep my composure. I shook his hand off my arm and turned to look at Jeanine, who was rubbing her temples in irritation.

"There's nothing we can do. His parents aren't going to turn him in, they're probably completely oblivious to his actions and his younger brother is too terrified of him to say anything."

I snap. "So, we wait until the kid's in the hospital on his death bed to arrest his brother?! How does that make sense? How is that _legal_?"

Jeanine turns to look at me, sadness in her usually cold eyes. "It's the law. He's still a minor, we can't just lock him up on suspicion."

Turning on my heels, I leave the room with the door slamming shut behind me. It's the end of my shift so I grab my jacket and keys and storm out of the office. I can't stay in there, knowing that that boy is being hurt but we can't do anything until his parents complain or he ends up in the hospital. The thought makes me sick.

I stand on the sidewalk, in front of my car, and close my eyes, taking a deep breath. When my eyes open, I turn to see the same family walking out of the police station.

Unable to control myself, I stomp over to meet the parents when they step down. They both glance up from their phones, startled by my sudden appearance. "Your older son is hurting Brent and you need to do something about it before Brent ends up in the hospital on his death bed." I hiss, glaring at them both.

The mom stares at me in utter horror and to dad looks ticked off. Good. "How dare you! You are out of line, detective!" He sounds too defensive.

"You need to control your kid! He's going to end up hurting other people, along with his brother, and leaving bruises all over him and breaking his arms are just the beginning of what he'll do the older he gets. He thinks he can get away with everything because you don't reprimand him!"

Somebody grabs my arm, pulling me a few inches away from the parents. "That's enough, Tris." Tobias's breath is warm on my ear as he whispers, "Calm down…now."

He then turns to the parents. "I apologize for my detective's…freak-out. She'll be reprimanded for her actions. You all are free to go." He dismisses them and they leave without another word.

"They're not going to do anything to deal with that little shit!" I exclaim, pointing at the older brother. "We can't just let them take him home and let him near his brother!"

"Tris, there's nothing we can do. Trust me, it pains me to watch them take Brent home knowing that the brother is the cause of his pain and suffering. But we can't do anything – it's the law."

Frustrated, I make my way back to my car and yank open my door. Tobias is suddenly behind me, one arm stretched out to hold the top of my door as I am lowering myself into the driver's seat. "I'll come over later." I just glance up at him and then pull the door shut.

Once at home, I take a quick shower and change into a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. I'm still heated over the case and the only thing I think of that'll make me calmer is some wine. I grab the chilled white wine from my fridge and pour a glass, maybe a little more than is acceptable.

About an hour later, there's a knock on my door and I know that it's Tobias. Sighing, I place my second glass of wine down on the table and go to open the door for him.

He's changed out of the clothes he wore to work and is in a pair of dark blue jeans with a black t-shirt on. And he's holding a box of something.

"Brownies." He says, noticing me studying the box. "I know that you love to eat junk food when you're pissed." He gives me a sly smirk and I roll my eyes, stepping aside to let him in.

"Look," I start as soon as he's in the apartment and the door shuts. "I'm really not in the mood for sex right now. I'm too agitated."

Tobias just nods, setting the box on the table. "I know, I didn't expect you to be in the mood. I just came over to talk." He turns to face me, folding his arms over his chest and that's when I see his hands – his knuckles are scratched up and it looks like they were bleeding earlier.

"What did you do?" I ask, praying he didn't do anything that'll get him fired.

He looks down at his hands and shrugs, sitting down on the couch. "You're not the only one who's fired up over this damn case."

"Please tell me you didn't hit anyone."

He smirks at me, pulling his hand back. "I didn't hit anyone. I had to take my anger out some way and I figured boxing was my best bet…" He trails off and I can guess what else he's thinking – he was worried he'd hurt me if we slept together while he was angry.

Wimp.

I sit down next to him on the couch and grab my wine glass and a brownie. Tobias snatches the TV remote from my lap and starts to flick through the channels.

Two episodes of Top Chef later, both Tobias and I get texts at the same time. Jeanine needs us at the station right away, says it'll only take about an hour and then we have the next day and a half off. Fantastic.

"Where do you think you're going?" Tobias asks me as we both stand up off the couch.

I look at him like he's crazy. "The station? Jeanine needs us."

He shakes his head, pointing to the couch. "You've been drinking, you're not going anywhere."

I roll my eyes at him. "I've had two glasses of wine and the last glass I had was an hour ago. I'm fine, I'm not drunk." I stretch my arms out to my side and take turns touching my pointer fingers to my nose just to be a smartass about it. "See? Sober."

He hesitates for a moment and then sighs. "Fine, but I'm driving."

Without arguing, I change into the clothes I was wearing earlier and we're out the door in the next five minutes.

Jeanine and Max are talking when we make it to the station and they both look up when we enter. "Eaton go to Interrogation Room A to talk to the suspect, Prior go to the briefing room to talk with the victim." There's a sly smirk on her face when she says victim and I shake my head as I head towards the briefing room.

When I open the door, there's a girl that looks to be about my age with short blonde hair. She's wearing what looks to be clubbing attire and her makeup's kind of smudged. Something I note is that she isn't crying, but she's pacing the room looking irritated.

"Hi, I'm detective Prior. I'm going to need to take a statement from you. I'm really sorry for this, but you're going to have to go through the events in as much detail as you can. What's your name?"

She looks me up and down and then takes a seat at the table, shaking her head as she sits. "Marlene and there's not much to tell. I was leaving a party when that asshole," she nods in the direction of the interrogation room, "grabs me and tries to pull me into the alley next to the club. I don't think he expected much of a fight, probably thought I'd be drunk off my ass, so the hit to his balls caught him by surprise…"

"Wait." I interrupt her, looking up from my notepad. "You fought him?"

Marlene nods, looking defensive. "Of course, I did. What was I supposed to do? Let him rape me?"

I try to control my face, but I'm too amazed. "He didn't rape you?" She shakes her head. "That's…good. Did you want to press charges?" I ask.

"No, I just wanted to set an example that guys like him couldn't try and go after innocent and defenseless girls and think that they could get away with violating them."

I stand up, closing my notepad. "Alright, well, you're free to leave. Unless you want us to take you to the hospital to make sure everything's fine?"

"He didn't get any hits in."

Unable to contain myself, I laugh. "If you ever need a job, we're always hiring and could use women like you with us. It'd set a good example for younger girls and terrify suspects." I smirk and she laughs.

As we're leaving the room, Tobias is coming out of the interrogation room and glances over at me in surprise. His eyes scan Marlene quickly and I can tell that he's scrutinizing her.

How badly did she mess this guy up?

Once Marlene's gone, I head over to the window to the interrogation room and gasp when I see the guy. He's slouching in the chair, but I can see that his shirt's ripped along his shoulder and down to the middle of this chest. He has multiple, bright red scratch marks along his collarbones and arms. His slightly crooked nose has dried blood under it, and there's a wicked bruise along his cheek.

"That girl really messed him up." Tobias says, appearing beside me. "He actually tried to see if he could be the one to press charges." I look up at him and he smirks. "I laughed in his face. But she really messed him up good, holy shit." He whistles in appreciation.

I nod in agreement. "I told her if she ever wanted a job, we could use her." And if she didn't want a job with us, I could always use a training partner in the gym.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

 **Tobias**

* * *

Tris was sound asleep next to me on her stomach, her arms disappearing beneath her pillow and her blonde hair splayed around her. Her back was bare and I had to resist the urge to run my fingers lightly across her smooth skin.

God, I loved touching her – not sexually (at least, not all the time) – but just…brushing my hand against hers or when we were standing next to each other and I managed to place my hand on the small of her back without anyone noticing.

She was so warm. So warm and so strong.

She could handle anything that was thrown at her and not break apart. Sure, she's broken a few times, but this job took a toll on everybody and everybody broke down now and again. But her? She held it in and didn't let anyone see how much pain a case caused her.

I watched her, just earlier today, talking to a girl who was being physically abused by her father and she didn't tear up or show any kind of anger around the girl. She sat with the girl as she cried into her shoulder, reassuring her that we'd arrest her father and that she'd never have to see him again. I watched in awe.

Neither of us has slept over the other's house in a while, since we started…whatever this was between us, but last night we were both just so exhausted that after, she didn't bother to kick me out and just told me to stay the night.

Carefully, as soft as a feather, I brush my fingers down her back, tracing the line of her spine. She barely shifts in her sleep, a deep sigh leaving her chest.

Sliding out from under the sheets, I pull my clothes back on and creep out of her room as quietly as I can. I ease her bedroom door shut, wincing as the hinges squeal as I latch it shut.

"Uhh…hi there." I jump at the sound of someone speaking and turn to see Christina sitting at the kitchen table, a spoonful of cereal paused halfway to her mouth. "What…?" She looks at me, at the door I just snuck out of, and then back to me. "No!" She gasps, dropping the spoon into her bowl, smiling.

I put my finger to my lips, hoping Tris doesn't wake up. "Christina! Quiet!" I run my fingers through my hair, frustrated, pulling at the roots. "Why are you here?"

She quirks an eyebrow at me. "Really? You're asking me why I'm here?" I nod. "I crashed on her couch last night. Me and Will got into a fight. Now, why are you here?"

"We were going over cases last night and we just crashed." I lied smoothly, but she just gave me a look that told me she did not believe a single word that I said.

"Yeah, okay. Whatever you say." She goes back to eating her cereal and the door behind me opens to reveal Tris in a plain white t-shirt and a pair of pajama bottoms.

Her face pales as she spots Christina and then looks to me. I give her a sheepish smile and say, "We've been caught." Christina is glaring at Tris and I can tell from her glare that she's going to want to talk to Tris without me here. "Well, I have to go. You two have fun…talking about whatever it is you're going to talk about."

I'm just about to walk out the door, but Tris grabs my arm. "Oh no you don't. You are not leaving me here to explain this to Chris by myself."

"She's your friend!" I exclaim.

"And you're involved in this situation so you have to stay and deal with it." She shoots back. She looks both terrified and annoyed. "Please." She whispers, low enough so that only I can hear.

I glance back at Christina, who's cleaning up her dishes, pretending like she can't hear us. "Fine."

Tris turns back to face Christina, who is now leaning up against the kitchen counter with her arms crossed over her chest and a knowing look plastered on her face. "So, when did this start?" She asks right out.

"A few weeks ago." I tell her, crossing my arms over my chest to match her body language.

She quirks an eyebrow and, for the first time, I see Tris shrink away. Even when facing guys much older than her who have weapons she doesn't shrink away, but her best friend questioning her personal life? Apparently, she finds that terrifying.

"Are you two dating?"

"No, it's not like that." Tris finally speaks up, her voice timid. I raise my eyebrows at her, trying to figure out what is going on with her.

Christina pushes herself off the counter, stepping closer. "So, it's just sex, then?" Both Tris and I glance at each other and then nod. "Why didn't you tell me?" Her question is directed at Tris.

Tris shrugs, looking ashamed. "We didn't want it to get out because we didn't need anybody trying to label us as a couple. So, you can't tell anybody. Not even Will."

Christina rolls her eyes. "You know I won't tell anybody." I give her a look and she sticks her tongue out at me. "I won't!" She says defensively.

I shake my head and then turn to Tris. "I need to go."

* * *

 _I know that this is super short, but I feel so bad that I haven't uploaded in awhile. I've had classes to focus on, work and applying for a handful of internships. I've tried to keep up with writing, but obviously college comes first. I'm so sorry, but I promise you that I am not done with this story!_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

 **Tris**

* * *

"Okay, but do you think that you two would ever actually go on a date? Like…take this 'friends with benefits' thing to the next level?" Christina asked me for the millionth time in the past four days.

Her questioning hadn't let up since she caught Tobias trying to leave my apartment. Honestly, if she wasn't our best IT person she would be an amazing detective. She'd kick ass at interrogations and get suspects to confess faster than Tobias or I could.

"Chris, I don't know. We're both happy with the situation that we have going on right now and it keeps things easy and simple, no stress about anything." I shoved my shoulder into the door of the precinct.

She frowned at me. "Okay, but…" I shot her a look that told her to drop it and she did, thankfully.

I made my way to my desk while Christina headed towards her little computer cave, mumbling about how best friends are supposed to share everything with each other.

Tobias was seated across from me and he quirked an eyebrow at me. I just shook my head as I sat down. "Prior, Eaton…case incoming."

I groaned. It wasn't even seven in the morning and I just got here.

Less than ten minutes later, a kid walks into the precinct with an officer escorting him in. Both Tobias and I stood up and Tobias went to go and grab him to take him to the interrogation room, but the officer held his hand up and shook his head. "He's not the suspect."

I glanced over at Tobias and he stepped aside. "Follow me…" I say, confused, and the guy followed me into one of the family rooms.

He took a seat at table, folding his hands in front of him, and I took a seat next to him, turning my chair to face him.

"Look," He started right away, eyes focused on the table. "I didn't want to come to you guys, but my friend was telling me that I should, and I figured that this is probably nothing and you'll just send me on my way." He sounded doubtful.

"Just tell me what happened, and I'll see what I can do to help." I insisted in a friendly voice. "Let's start with your name."

He takes a deep breath. "My name's Kevin. I'm a junior at the University of Chicago and…I – well, my friend…she's the one that thinks that I may have been sexually assaulted."

"Can you tell me why she thinks this?"

"I was meeting up with this girl I met on Tinder the other night, we were going to get some drinks and then…hang out. We both had a few drinks and headed back to my room. We were making out on the couch and I didn't feel good, so I asked her if she would mind leaving so that I could just go to bed, but she said that she didn't want to and that she came over to hook up. She straddled me and…I couldn't control my reaction and she just…" He made a gesture with his hands and I knew what he meant. "She was stronger than I thought and had my hands held down on the couch."

I scribbled a few notes in my notepad and then looked back up at him. "Can I ask why you thought that this wasn't important enough to come talk to us earlier?"

Kevin shrugged, rubbing at his temples. "Because I know how these things work. I know that nobody ever believes that a guy can be assaulted like that, because we're bigger and stronger and usually the "dominant" ones."

"Kevin, it doesn't matter who you are – anybody can be assaulted. And it does happen to guys."

He still didn't look convinced. "Nobody's going to believe me because I was turned on."

I shook my head. "That's a natural bodily instinct – you have absolutely no control over that whatsoever."

After a few more questions, I managed to get him to tell me what the girl's name was and if he knows anything about where she lives.

By the time that I was out of the room, after assuring Kevin that everything would be fine, Tobias already had two patrol officers on their way to picking the girl up to bring her in.

"How did they meet again?" He asks when we're standing by our desks.

"Tinder? I don't know what that is, but they met on there and then met up that night."

Christina is suddenly next to me, making me jump when she speaks. "Tinder's a dating app…well, more like a hook-up app. A lot of college kids use it to find one-night stands. There are a ton of other apps like it out there."

"Seriously? People use it to just find a hook-up?" I ask in disbelief.

I didn't understand why it so surprised me. Kids nowadays seemed to just want non-committal relationships – I mean, look at what me and Tobias were doing. We just didn't use a dating app to start it.

Twenty minutes later, the two patrol officers walk in trailing behind a medium-stature girl. She looks like the athletic type and has a neutral expression on her face, not looking too worried about anything.

"Jennifer?" I ask, and she nods. "Follow us, please."

We sit her down in the interrogation room and she glanced between Tobias and myself, focusing more on Tobias with interest. My stomach twists with disgust. "What's going on?" She asks Tobias flirtatiously.

"Well, your hook-up from the other night, Kevin, came in and said that you assaulted him…" Tobias says, and all hints of flirtatiousness disappears from her face, replaced by anger. "And we need to know if you really did or not."

She shakes her head. "I didn't do anything he didn't want me to. And trust me," She says, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest. "He wanted it."

I rolled my eyes at her cockiness. "And how do you know that he wanted it?"

"He was turned on. And I mean, why wouldn't he be?" She shrugs again.

I take a seat across the table from her, folding my hands in front of me and I'm acutely aware of the fact that Tobias is standing right behind me. "Here's the thing, there's no reason for Kevin to lie about this, because if he decides to take this to court…we all know how easily it can be twisted to fit your narrative and make him look guilty."

Jennifer rolls her eyes. "He was turned on, he wanted it. Why else would he bring me back to his dorm room?"

"Yeah, he says that he asked you to leave because he was feeling sick. And his reaction was a normal bodily reaction – he had no control over that. Surely someone your age should be able to know that by now." Tobias says. "You're supposed to be pre-med, right?" She nods sheepishly. "I'm super positive that any and every med school doesn't accept you if you're convicted of any kind of crime."

Kevin already said that he didn't want to press charges, he just wanted to end this. I had already given him the name of a good counselor who he could talk to about his situation and hope that he can feel better.

I left her with Tobias while I headed back to where Christina was sitting at my desk. "Hey, how'd it go with her?"

I shrugged, leaning against the edge of my desk. "Tobias is finishing everything up. She was more interested in him, so I figured it'd be best to leave them alone."

Christina looks up at me, leaning back in the chair with her arms crossed and a sly smirk on her face. "You're jealous." She states.

Scoffing, I glance down at my shoes. "I am not."

She laughs again and nudges me with the toe of her boot. "You definitely are!"

"She's a junior in college! I hardly have any competition with her." Besides, she had black hair – Tobias was into blondes.

Tobias is suddenly beside me and we drop the conversation. He gives me a brief rundown of what Jennifer said after I left and then he starts the paperwork to give to Jeanine.

Before Tobias can even sit down at his desk, Jeanine pops her head out of her office. "Eaton, my office."

We exchange quick glances, he shrugs and then disappears into her office, shutting the door behind him. I look over at Christina, who just pushes herself out of the chair and heads back to her little cavern.

Just as I'm about to sit down, Tobias is suddenly storming out of Jeanine's office, slamming the door behind him so hard everyone in the precinct goes quiet for a few moments as he storms out.

My stomach drops, and I want to chase after him, but Jeanine looks at me and just shakes her head, turning to head back into her office.

The rest of my shift, I can't stop worrying about Tobias. I want to call him and find out what happened, but my desk is piled with paperwork and I need to get it done. I hurry through as much of the paperwork as I can, and then I clock out as soon as my shift ends.

Tobias isn't answering my phone calls and I start to worry about him. I asked Christina if she knew anything, she didn't. I then went to Max and Zeke and they both said that they didn't know a thing, they didn't even know he had stormed out.

Giving up on trying to call him, I do the next best thing – head to his apartment.

I'm banging on the door fifteen minutes later, ignoring the annoyed groans from his neighbors. "Tobias, I know you're in there! I can hear the TV!" I bang my fist against the door again. "Come on, let me in."

The door swings open and he looks…strange. He's not pissed but his eyes are vacant, like he's not trying to feel.

I push my way in, and shut the door behind me. "Tobias, what happened? What did Jeanine say to you?"

There's a handful of empty beer bottles on the kitchen counter and a half empty one sitting on the coffee table in front of where he had to be on the couch. He heads into the kitchen, grabbing the empty bottles and dropping them into the recycling bin.

"Do you remember that kid I talked to? His brother was abusing him, but Jeanine wouldn't let us investigate because there wasn't enough evidence to get a warrant?" Which was bullshit, because we had reasonable suspicion, but I didn't push him. "He's in a coma right now." His voice is tight, strained, and he keeps his back to me. His hands are gripping the edge of the counter, his knuckles turning white. "Because his brother...his brother lost control of his temper and just beat him until Brent couldn't take it. And now he's in a coma when I could have saved him…" He trails off and his head drops, his shoulders shake, and I realize he's crying.

I don't know what else to do so I walk up behind up and wrap my arms around his torso tightly, pressing my cheek against his back, against the tattoo that I know is underneath his shirt.

I don't say anything or ask him anything. I just keep my arms wrapped tightly around him, comforting him. Eventually his arms fold over mine, the warmth of him seeping into my skin.

"You can't save everybody." I say softly, my cheek still pressed to his back. "No matter how hard you try and that's okay."

Tobias shakes his head. "I could have saved him…"

"I don't think you could have."

He shoves himself away from the counter and I drop my arms, taking a few steps back as he storms into the living room. "There was plenty that I could've done!" He bellows, gripping his hair at the roots.

I follow him and stop a few feet away, to give him space. "Tobias…"

"No, Tris. You need to leave."

Staring at him, I can see how much pain he's in. He's not stable. I shake my head. "No."

His eyes narrow and he drops his hands, balling them into fists to control his anger. "Tris…"

"No!" I bark at him. "I am not leaving you to deal with this alone! I know that if I do leave, the moment I step out that door you're going to get drunk as hell to try and deal with the pain you're feeling. I know because I've been there, and I wish I had someone to help me at the time. So, if you want me to leave, you're going to have to force me." I challenge and it's a stupid challenge. He could easily pick me up and kick my ass out the door.

His body sags and his fists relax. I step closer to him, looking up at him. "I am not leaving you."

Without hesitating, he grabs my wrists and pulls me into his chest, crushing me against him, burying his face in my neck.


End file.
